


Sweet as Molasses

by Nedschlorinee



Category: Twenty One Pilots
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Angst, Caregiver Josh, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Josh is sooooo nice wtf, Little Space, Little Ty, Little Tyler, M/M, Non-Sexual Age Play, au-no band
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-01
Updated: 2019-12-09
Packaged: 2020-07-28 17:24:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 7,580
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20067766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nedschlorinee/pseuds/Nedschlorinee
Summary: Tyler lives alone in a small, simple apartment. Tyler struggles to keep a job, because employers look for someone that doesn’t lose focus easily. And doesn’t suck their thumb when they’re stressed.Josh lives alone in a small, simple apartment. Josh struggles to get enough sleep for his first shift job, because his next door neighbor is always crying late at night.





	1. Nightmare

Tyler looks around his apartment hopelessly, his bottom lip trembling.

Tyler had a bad dream, a terrible dream that had woken him up with a frightened cry. The dream was fading now, but the fear was not. Because Tyler was little, in the dark, and alone (as always).

Tyler was used to being alone, he had been for quite a long time. He didn’t like it though, especially when he was regressed. He had to try and do everything on his own, never fully able to let go and enjoy his little space. 

_ How is a 5 year old supposed to take care of himself? _

Tyler grabs Molasses the Sloth (his favorite plush) from the other side of the bed, holding him tightly to his chest.He whimpers the longer he sits, too scared to move. He hugs Molasses closer, rubbing his soft belly against his cheek, and begins to cry.

“‘M scared, Mo Mo,” Tyler whimpers to the sloth, “‘M scared!”

Molasses gives no reply, and Tyler wails and sobs for a long moment. He’s exhausted, he’s panicking, and a small part of him remembers he has another interview in the morning. And he needs to get this job.

Tyler sniffles, trying to remember the things that help him feel better. He searches blindly for the colorfully stickered TV remote on the nightstand. The one plus to having a tiny studio apartment: he can watch TV from his bed. 

Tyler finds the power button on the remote and awakens the TV to a bright starting screen. Tyler whines and covers his eyes.

Thankfully, the channel he was looking for is already on. 

Tyler snuggles back down into the covers as Pocoyo plays on the screen, grabbing a few other stuffies and bringing them closer to him. His breathing evens as he stares at the characters on the screen, entranced. And eventually, his tired, swollen eyes close as he drifts back to sleep. 


	2. Crooked Tie

Josh is woken by a jarring vibration against his head. He moves away from it quickly, and realizes it’s his alarm. He must have fallen asleep holding his phone again, that’s been happening a lot lately. Josh groans loudly, grabbing his phone and turning the alarm off as quickly as he can. He rolls onto his back and sighs.

4 hours of sleep was definitely not good enough for Josh. He’s exhausted and slightly irritated, but forces himself to sit up in bed so he doesn’t fall back asleep. 

Josh moved into this apartment 2 months ago. It’s not much to work with, but it’s good enough for him. It’s closer to his job at the local gym, and much safer than his previous apartment complex. He has no complaints.

Except maybe one.

Josh slowly stands up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes and begins getting ready for work. Josh pauses at first, listening for any noise coming from next door.

Silence.

Josh shakes his head and heads to the bathroom.

Josh’s neighbor is really starting to worry him, and maybe irritate him a bit too. For the 2 months Josh has lived in this apartment, his neighbor has cried almost every night. And it’s not usually just a few sobs and sniffles. Josh is talking loud, pitiful cries that sound like he is in pain. Which, maybe he is, but thinking about that makes Josh’s heart clench.

Josh feels terrible for him, he really does. He feels terrible for himself too. The walls of the apartments are thin, and he can hear every choke and hiccuped breath like the guy is sitting next to him. Even when the cries quiet down and silence is all that’s left, he still lays in bed awake, thinking about the poor kid and what could be causing him so much constant distress. He’s thought many times about knocking on his door late at night, to make sure he’s okay or if he needed to talk. He hasn’t had the guts to do it though. Even the nights that the wails keep him up so late that he wants to cry himself, he can’t bring himself to bother him. 

Josh _would_ move his bed away from the wall that they share, but there’s no where else in the small apartment where he could move it to.

Josh has only seen the boy twice; he doesn’t even know his name. The first time was when Josh was moving into the apartment. He was moving all his boxes and furniture into the small space by himself. The few friends he had were working or probably drunk in their own places. As Josh began to walk back down to the elevator to get the next group of boxes, he saw the door next to his cracked open. And there was his neighbor, peeking through the crack like he was a spy. All Josh could see was two big, brown eyes staring shyly at him. Josh smiled, and went to give an awkward wave. He wanted to introduce himself, but the door was shut quickly before he could even move his hand. Josh was confused, but didn’t want to bother someone that clearly didn’t want visitors. 

The next time was only a week ago. Josh had went down to the main floor to check his mail, and there he was, opening the mail slot next to Josh’s. Neighbor boy was wearing a light yellow hoodie with black jeans, the hood pulled over his head. As he turned around, clutching the mail between his small hands, Josh was finally able to see his face.

He was... cute. Hot wasn’t the word, he looked too innocent to be “hot”, so Josh went for cute instead. Delicate. He didn’t look to be any older than 18. His frame was thin and almost feminine, quite the opposite of Josh. His hair was fluffed around his forehead, flattened by the hood on his head. And his wide, fawn eyes were frozen on Josh, as if he had never seen another person before. When Josh smiled and said hello, the boys’ cheeks immediately blushed red.

Everything about him was cute.

The poor boy managed to murmur a soft “hi”, before his entire face flushed and he turned quickly back to the elevator, almost tripping on the carpet.

To Josh, his neighbor was a very confusing mystery. Josh sometimes felt like he knew him just by how much he listened to his cries. But there were also occasions where he would hear happy noises. Sounds of giggling, and a young voice talking to someone. Sometimes the TV would be turned up loud enough that Josh could hear it himself. Josh swore he heard the Caillou theme song once, and it was stuck in his head for the rest of the day. Did his neighbor have a kid? He didn’t seem old enough to have one.. Josh had never seen anyone else come in and out of the apartment. The boy seemed to rarely leave himself.

Josh told himself that he needed to mind his own business, and get ready for work.

The work day went fairly quickly for Josh. It was a typical day at the gym, training with the same clients that he did every week. His last client was away on vacation, so Josh was able to leave a bit early. He was relieved, and was looking forward to going home and maybe getting a few extra hours of sleep. 

As Josh walked arrived on his floor, he was surprised to see neighbor-boy in the hallway as well. He was wearing a button down shirt now, with a tie around his neck that looked to be on crooked. Josh was again struck by how adorable he was. He wasn’t able to admire for long though, frowning when he saw how much the boy’s hands were shaking as he fumbled with his keys. And of course, he was crying. 

Josh could only stand to watch him struggle for so long. When the boy dropped his keys all together and let out a pathetic sob, Josh rushed towards him.

“Hey,” Josh soothed, ignoring how much the boy jumped when Josh spoke (he must not have noticed him), “it’s okay. Do you need some help? I can unlock it for you.” 

The boy sniffled, staring shyly at the floor while he gnawed intensely on his thumb. Josh cringed, wanting to stop him before the boy drew blood.He knew he shouldn’t touch him though, Josh hardly knew him.

“Is it okay if I unlock it for you?” Josh asked again gently. The boy nodded slowly, meeting eyes with Josh for a moment before quickly looking back down.

“Otay.” He murmured, voice garbled by his thumb in his mouth.

Josh nodded, picking up the keys and unlocking the door for him. “Um.. my name’s Josh, I’m your next door neighbor.. What’s your name?”

The boy was quiet for a moment, almost as if he didn’t hear the question. When Josh began to ask him again, he finally answered: “Tyler.”

Tyler. It fit perfectly. Soft, adorable, captivating. Tyler.

Josh smiled warmly. “It’s really nice to meet you Tyler. Here’s your keys back.” Tyler looked up, slowly outstretching his hands together in front of him. Josh gently placed them in his scooped hands, smiling at how cute the action was. Tyler took a step back, looking down at his keys. “Tank-thank you.” He said quietly.

“No problem, I’m glad I could help.. Let me know if you ever need anything, okay? I just live right here.” Josh pointed to the door to the left of them. Tyler nodded, giving a little smile that made Josh’s heart pound. He turned then, walking into his apartment with keys in hand. 

“Have a good night.” Josh said, awkwardly turning to head to his own door. He heard the smallest “n-night” behind him before Tyler’s door closed shut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am a sucker for sweet strong protective josh UGH


	3. Pooh

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait, I work 60 hrs a week and hate everything I write :)))  
Brief mention of thoughts of self harm in this chapter

Tyler closed the door gently behind him, turning around to face his messy apartment. Tears began to stream down his face again as the events of the day played over in his head.

Tyler had tried so hard to get everything right at his job interview today. Waking up to a Wonder Pets episode playing quietly on the tv immediately made him feel little. He had to force himself to get ready, struggling with all of the buttons on his “interview shirt”. He successfully made it to the restaurant 10 minutes early, and he felt confident in himself.

And then, the same thing happened that always did.

Tyler is not good at talking to new people, or being in new situations. Feeling shy was putting it lightly. As soon as the manager sat him down to ask him some questions, Tyler froze. He tried his best to answer the questions correctly, but couldn’t help how quietly he answered, or the fact that he was chewing on his thumb the entire time, trying desperately to stay calm and not suck his thumb in front of his potential boss. 

The manager seemed off-put by Tyler’s behavior, and Tyler could tell he was doing his best to not be rude. He asked multiple times for Tyler to repeat his answers, unable to understand between the rushed mumbling and the fingers in his mouth. By the time the interview was over, the skin around Tyler’s thumb was bleeding.

The manager shook his hand and said, “We’ll call you if you’re hired.” Tyler knew by now that meant he wasn’t getting the job. He rushed out of the restaurant with a embarrassed flush on his face.

Now he was completely mortified. He stood in place for a moment sniffling pathetically. He couldn’t believe he just humiliated himself in front of his _extremely_ handsome neighbor. The man probably though he was stupid, that something was wrong with him._ He was sweet though, he smiled at you._ Tyler sniffled and wiped his cheeks with his arms, getting the sleeves of his shirt wet. He was having a mental struggle, wanting to let go and be little, but also being so upset that he couldn’t let himself do so.

He always fucked everything up. It wouldn’t be long until his parents realized he was a complete failure and disowned him completely. They were being generous, giving him money for food and a place to live as long as he promised to get a job. As long as they didn’t have to acknowledge his life otherwise, then it was fine.

Tyler sobbed at the thought, clenching his fists so hard that he could feel his nails digging into his skin painfully. He hated himself for wanting more pain than his fingernails caused.

The fact that he was so upset he wanted to hurt himself terrified him. He shouldn’t want to do that (not anymore). He had other ways of coping now. And maybe they were “weird”, but they didn’t hurt him or anyone else.

Tyler huffed and pushed the bad thoughts to the back of his head, and clumsily kicked his shoes off at the door. He changed his clothes into soft pants and a pale blue sweater, that had white smiling clouds covering it. His tears had mostly subsided as he grabbed a Capri-Sun and some animal crackers from the kitchen. He decided that he had tried his best, even if it wasn’t good enough. He would have a cozy night, and worry about life tomorrow. 

A smile was brought to his face as he started to watch Christopher Robin, one of his favorites. He hugged Molasses close to his chest as he watched, sucking on the one pacifier that he owned. It was a sunshine yellow, with a baby Pooh eating honey from a jar on the front. He couldn’t help but cry throughout the movie, he always did. He thought about how much he felt like Piglet sometimes, always too scared to do much of anything. And sometimes he felt like Eeyore, too depressed to want to do anything but lay in bed. He wished he had someone like Pooh to help him feel brave, to help him not feel so scared and sad all the time. A year ago Tyler longed for a relationship. A caretaker, someone to make him chicken nuggets and cuddle with, maybe even help with bath time. He learned quickly that would never be a possibility, nobody wanted a boyfriend that acted like a 5 year old and didn’t have a job. He was okay with that now, had accepted it. He could take care of himself (even when he didn’t want to).

Now, Tyler just wished for a friend, something he hadn’t had for a long time.


	4. Pancakes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Little more sadness until we can get into some happy fluffy Ty guy. Thanks for reading!

When Josh woke the next morning, he felt more refreshed than he had in a long time. It was Sunday, and he was thankful to have the day off to relax and do whatever he pleased. He started the morning by taking a hot shower, and making some pancakes for breakfast.

Josh was pleasantly surprised that he wasn’t woken up by crying the night before. It was a very calm evening, he could hear noise from the tv next door, but it was quiet enough to be indecipherable. 

He was happy to have a night of uninterrupted sleep for once, but it was so out of the ordinary that he was a bit concerned.. He huffed a laugh to himself at that, why should he be concerned by a lack of crying? He should be reassured by it.

Josh hadn’t been able to stop thinking about Tyler since he opened his door for him. It was obvious that Tyler was upset (like usual), the small smile he gave Josh was the first he had seen on his face. It had always been a face full of tears, or a face of confusion with glazed eyes and stumbling feet. Josh much preferred the sweet smile with rosy cheeks over the others. 

It was with that thought that Josh jumped at the loud crash next door. Tyler.

Josh waited for any noise of crying or screaming, and none came. It made him so worried that he quickly turned the heat off on the stove and headed to Tyler’s door. The pancakes could wait.

Josh knocked on the door 3 times, and waited anxiously for an answer. He didn’t realize he was holding his breath until the door cracked open. Tyler poked his head out slowly, his eyes holding an expression that Josh couldn’t place. He stared at Josh vacantly, silently. His hair was messy, up in small random tufts on his head. He was wearing a plain black hoodie that was at least 2 sizes too big. It looked like the black was swallowing him whole, and it made Josh uneasy.

“Hey man,” Josh said quietly, “is everything okay? I heard a crash.. I just wanted to make sure you were alright.”

Tyler looked down and picked at the skin on his wrist. “Yeah, I’m fine. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be loud. I.. I just dropped something. Sorry.” 

Josh shook his head. “It’s okay, no reason to be sorry. I was just concerned is all..” Tyler nodded, shifting on his feet awkwardly and staring at his now-irritated wrist. Josh frowned, wanting to pry Tyler’s fingernails away before he drew blood to the delicate skin. And delicate it was...

When the light from the hall hit just right, Josh saw the scattered white scars on Tyler’s wrist. Tyler was picking at them. The sight caused Josh’s heart to sink to his feet, nausea and a sense of panic gripping him. He realized quickly the mental state Tyler must be in, and he wanted to help. Needed to.

“Hey.” Josh said quickly, and with a bit too much urgency, based on how fast Tyler looked up, his eyes flashing in fear (like he was caught doing something bad). 

“Sorry.. Um, do you like pancakes? I was just making some, and I can make a lot. I just thought, if you wanted some.. I have enough to share, and I didn’t know if you had eaten yet?”

Josh was rambling, he knew he was. He just wanted to Tyler to stop looking so so sad and picking at his scars. So if he wasn’t being as smooth as usual, then sue him.

It worked though. Tyler was staring at him, his hands down to his sides. He looked unsure, but also had a hint of a shy smile on his face.

“Do you have chocolate chips?”

And in that moment, Josh knew he would do anything to make Tyler smile.


	5. Sleepover

With each week that passed, Josh and Tyler spent more time together. Josh had to work more days than not, but he felt confident enough now to knock on Tyler’s door once he was home. Each evening he asked Tyler to join him for dinner, or spend some time together, Tyler always accepted with a kind smile. He never was invited into Tyler’s apartment, but Josh didn’t mind that. He was just happy that Tyler seemed to enjoy his company and felt comfortable in Josh’s space. 

Tyler was still shy and didn’t say much some days, but always listened to Josh and had a sweet smile on his face more frequently. 

Josh learned that Tyler was 19, lived alone, loved writing, and was trying unsuccessfully to get a job. Tyler learned that Josh was 24, a personal trainer, was very good at explaining things, and was unbelievably kind.

Sometimes Josh felt like Tyler was scared to be himself around him. There had been multiple occasions that Tyler would become excited about a topic, voice raising in level and pitch, until suddenly he wasn’t excited anymore. It was over as fast as it started. It seemed whenever he was joyful, he forced himself to not be. It confused and concerned Josh, but he hadn’t found the right words to discuss it with him. 

One night, they stayed up so late playing Mario Kart and eating snacks, that Tyler fell asleep on the couch. Josh smiled fondly at him. He looked adorable cuddled up on the cushion, his face empty of all nervousness and uncertainty. Josh tried in vain to ignore the fondness swelling in his chest at the sight. He laid a blanket over Tyler and switched off the light, heading to his bed on the other side of the small space. 

Josh was awoke a few hours later by the sound of sobbing, closer than usual. For a moment he thought it was next door, until he remembered Tyler bundled up on his couch. Josh quickly stumbled out of bed and walked up to Tyler. Little Tyler, who was curled so tightly on the couch, clutching the blanket as if it was his lifeline. Josh couldn’t see any sign as to why Tyler was sobbing so hysterically, and when he tried to shush and soothe him it was helpless.

“What’s wrong Ty? What can I do?” Josh asked desperately, running a hand through Tyler’s sweat-soaked hair in an attempt to soothe him. Tyler shook his head, rubbing his eyes clumsily. Josh couldn’t help be taken back once Tyler spoke.

“I want Mo-Mo! Where’s he?”

Josh mind blanked, trying to figure out who this Mo-Mo was. Tyler had never mentioned him.

“He gone!” Tyler wailed, “Where he go?”

“Hey, it’s okay,” Josh soothed, “where’s the last place you saw Mo-Mo?”

Tyler thought for a moment at that. “Bed..” he sniffled. “Dis not my bed!” He cried louder than before. Josh hushed him, trying to think of a way to calm him before the neighbors called the cops.

“Okay Ty, do you wanna go to bed? Your own bed?”

“Uh-huh” Tyler nodded, sniffling loudly.

“Alright, we can do that. Let’s go okay? Come on.” Josh helped Tyler sit up, grabbing the keys he had left on the coffee table.

It was more of a challenge then he expected, getting Tyler up and into the hallway. His heart clenched when Tyler grabbed his pinky finger, holding it like it was Josh’s whole hand. Josh was able to unlock the door to Tyler’s apartment with one hand, gently guiding Tyler in. Though it seemed Tyler didn’t need help now, as he immediately ran to his bed and cuddled in. Josh stood confused for a moment, unsure if he should leave. Tyler never let Josh see a peek of his apartment, until now.

There was so many things in the apartment that surprised Josh. Stickers on the surface of so many things. The counters, the tv, and door were scattered with them. Many smiling stuffed animals were taking over the bed and the couch. The apartment was messy too, many plates and sippy cups strewn across the small space. The whole apartment looked like a 5 year old was living there, alone.

Josh felt as if he was invading on something very private, and tried his best not to focus on anything further. Tyler would have showed him if he wanted Josh to see it.

“You okay now, Ty? Do you feel better?” Josh asked softly, looking down at Tyler’s small frame cuddled in the bed.

Tyler nodded tiredly, cuddling a small fluffy creature. When there was a lull of silence, Tyler grinned, holding the plush up to Josh for him to see. 

“Dis is Molasses” Tyler whispered, smiling happily. Josh couldn’t help but smile back.

“Hi Molasses, nice to meet you.” Josh replied, shaking the long claws on the stuffed animal. Tyler giggled loudly at that, hugging Molasses back to him tightly. 

“Alright Ty, I’ll see you tomorrow okay? Get some rest.” Josh said quietly, walking towards the door.

“Oh.. otay.” Tyler said quietly. He wanted to pout, wanted to Josh to stay with him. He knew even in his mindset that it wasn’t a good idea.

“Goodnight, Tyler.”

“Night-night.”


	6. Now I just sit in silence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m baaaaack. :)  
Apologies for taking so long to update. I got married, had my honeymoon, and saw tøp in the month I was gone! Hopefully updates will be more frequent now that life has slowed down.  
This chapter is a bit of a filler to ease myself back in. Bear with me.

Josh went two days without hearing from Tyler.

And it wasn’t like Josh wasn’t trying to connect with him either. He knocked on Tyler’s door each morning and night, ready to offer him food or a round of Mario Kart at his place, like usual. But each time he knocked, Tyler never answered. Josh felt a wave of concern wash over him, growing larger each time.   


He knew that Tyler was home. He could hear small sounds coming from his apartment (maybe he laid his ear against the drywall to listen for them, so what?), common things like the microwave beeping, or the closing of a drawer. No alarming sobs of anguish or things being thrown, which was a positive. But nonetheless, Tyler was ignoring him.   
  
Josh was still confused by the night earlier in the week, when Tyler had a meltdown on his couch; when their friendship apparently ended. The broken speech from Tyler, all of the odd items scattered in his apartment.. He had a lot of questions, that was for sure. He wasn’t trying to be judgmental, he just wanted to understand. He had never met anyone else quite like Tyler.   
  
When Josh googled “adult acting like a child?”, most results were articles complaining about millennials acting immature, which just didn’t fit right. The next were discussions on neurological disabilities or effects of drug abuse. Josh had a feeling that wasn’t the case either. If only Tyler would just tell him himself, that’s all he wanted. And if he decided not to explain, well, Josh supposed he could deal with that too. As long as they could be friends again.

When the sun set on the third day of silence, Josh decided not to knock on Tyler’s door that night. His pride was hurt , and he was slightly ashamed at how many times Tyler had clearly ignored him. It was clear by now that Tyler wanted Josh to leave him alone, and he would do just that.

Josh had just become relaxed enough for his eyes to droop closed, when he heard it. The familiar, heartbreaking sounds of Tyler’s cries. His eyes snapped open, wondering if it had been his imagination, as he had started to drift from reality to dreams. He quickly decided they were real, as the noises continued coming from the wall. Josh’s heart squeezed in pain. It had been some time since he’d heard his cries from the other room, but he would recognize the choked sobs no matter how long it had been. Josh sighed sadly, placing his hand flat against the wall. He wished desperately that Tyler would let him back in to his life. He didn’t seem to have any other friends, he must feel so lonely..

When the muffled whimpers were cut off for a moment by a loud  _thud_ that he felt through the wall, Josh stopped breathing all together. Was he hitting the wall? Was he trying to hurt himself?

_ **Thud** _

Josh sat up in his bed, panic starting to make his head swim. He couldn’t let Tyler do this; couldn’t let him feel so alone that he was back to hurting himself.

“Tyler?” He called, loud enough that he knew he could be heard from the other side of the wall. “Ty.. it’s Josh. Please don’t hurt yourself, I- I don’t want you to do that..” he drifted off, not knowing quite what to say.

“Why do you care?” Tyler’s small voice cried, sobbing from the other side.

Josh gripped his bed sheets in frustration, feeling useless on from the other side of this stupid wall between them.

“Tyler,” he said firmly, “I’m going to go to your front door and knock three times.  Please  let me in.”

He received only a sniffle in reply. Josh sat up and pulled on a pair of sweatpants over his boxers, and walked quickly out into the hall. After knocking three times, he stood for what felt like forever in anticipation.

“Please Tyler, let me in..” he said quietly.

After a long moment, the lock on the door clicked open.


	7. Understanding

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are gonna start rolling now with the story line eeeeeee

Josh looked up to see Tylers bloodshot eyes staring cautiously at him, his hair in a panicked disarray. His door was barely cracked, only enough for Josh to see him. He knew Tyler was nervous to let him in.

“Hey Ty..” Josh warmed, his tone automatically going to one of comfort and reassurance. It always did when Tyler was upset like this. 

Tyler barely gave a response, only murmuring a “hi” and trying to find anything to look at but Josh’s bare torso in front of him. His cheeks burned red with embarrassment. If only he would’ve been less of a crybaby, he wouldn’t have had to face Josh.

Josh, who should want nothing to do with him now.

“You don’t have to let me in if you don’t want to, I just wanted to.. to talk to you. Make sure you’re o-“

“Why?” Tyler choked, “Why do you wanna talk to me? So you can make f-fun of me? Tell me to stop _crying_ all the time?” His lip wobbled, tears threatening to spill again. He bit his cheek harshly in an attempt to keep it together. “I’m sorry that I woke you up. I know I do a lot, it won’t happen again.”

“Hey, no.” Josh rushed, taking a step forward before Tyler could close the door on him. “I’m not mad, just worried. I care about you, Ty. Why would I make fun of you?”

Tyler blinked in shock at him, a tear escaping without a thought. He hadn’t been told that for a long time.

“You.. you saw my apartment, my stuff..”

Josh said nothing, waiting for him to continue and Tyler began crying in frustration.

“My-my stuffed animals, my sip- my cups, _everything_! I woke up small in your apartment! Why are you still wanting to talk to me?” He sobbed at the last part, his voice cracking with pain.

“Why would I not want to talk to you anymore? I’m confused, yes, but I’m not.. disgusted, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

Tyler cried harder at that, bringing his fists to his eyes to wipe at them harshly. He had to be dreaming, that was the only explanation.

Josh’s fingers twitched, wanting so badly to wipe the tears from the smaller’s face. He refrained, knowing now wasn’t the time. “You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to, it’s okay. But you’re my friend, at least, I want to be your friend. And I’m worried about you. I want you to know you can come to me whenever. Even when I’m sleeping.” He smiled playfully, making Tyler’s red face turned even darker.

There was a comfortable silence for a moment. And when Josh offered Tyler to come next door for some cookie dough ice cream, Tyler couldn’t argue with himself to say no. 

Things were more comfortable between the two after their ice cream bowls were empty. Both were laughing about a story Josh had told, when Tyler slowly went silent again.

“Can I tell you why?” He asked quietly, shooting Josh a nervous glance. “Why I have so much.. so much kids stuff?” He whispered the end, pulling his hand to his mouth to gnaw a fingernail.

Josh smiled warmly, and Tyler saw no judgement in his face. “Only if you want to.”

Tyler nodded, forcing himself to stop the assault on his nail. He resorted to lightly rocking back and forth instead. Already he regretted bringing it up. He didn’t know how to find the words..

“I.. I get nervous easily. And sad. I have for a long time, since I was a kid. My parents aren’t very l-loving, they never were. I’ve had a lot of bad habits, coping habits? Ones that hurt me. But when I regress, when I can feel like a child, it helps. Sometimes I can’t help doing it, and sometimes I can. But.. it makes me happy, for a little while. It helps me feel calm.”

The few seconds of silence were too much for Tyler, and  he began to panic before Josh could open his mouth.

“I know it’s weird. There’s other people too, I’m not the only one but it’s weird, I’m sorry. You’re only the second person I’ve ever told. Please don’t tell anyone, I don’t know who you would tell but please don’t-“

He swallowed his words when Josh knelt down in front of him, wrapping his arms around him in a slow and gentle hug. Tyler froze, wondering what he had done to deserve this affection. He couldn’t resist, and he shyly, selfishly rested his head gently onto Josh’s chest, soaking in the warmth.

“It’s okay Tyler. It’s okay.”


	8. Blue’s Clues

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ack this is rushed and I hate it but here ya go

In the days that followed, Tyler and Josh went back to their usual routine. Almost every night, they would eat dinner together, and watch TV. Sometimes they played Mario Kart instead of watching movies, or just sit and talk with no need for background noise. Tyler seemed to be in a good mood no matter what, smiling and laughing at Josh’s jokes (and possible attempts at flirting?). But no matter how happy he seemed, he was still shying away from any talk of his age regression. Josh didn’t mind if Tyler didn’t want to talk about it, he would never pressure him to. Tyler  did want to regress, though.

Josh could tell, he caught on quickly to the signs. The changes when he began to feel little were subtle, but Josh always noticed. The stress and unease that was surrounding the corners of Tyler’s eyes seemed to melt away, and his expression was full of childlike innocence, almost awe. On multiple occasions, Josh caught Tyler staring at nothing, the gentle nibbling on his thumb nail turning gradually into sucking his thumb. As soon as Josh would speak, the thumb was immediately spat out of his mouth with a look of shame. Josh felt guilty that Tyler was still afraid to let go around him. But whenever he insisted that it was okay, he didn’t mind one bit, Tyler would clam up even more.

On Friday evening, Josh decided to order pizza for the two instead of cooking himself. This excited Tyler, who liked pizza more than Josh was aware of, and he thanked Josh about 20 times before the delivery man even arrived with their order. They ate in content silence, watching a show that Tyler didn’t know the name of, but knew that Josh enjoyed it. If it made Josh happy, then he would happily watch it too. 

“Maybe next week we can go out to a restaurant together?” Josh spoke up, pushing the pizza box over to Tyler for him to grab another slice. “A change of scenery from this crummy place. There’s a really nice Thai place near my gym?”

“_Would that be a date?_”  Josh thought suddenly, “ _ Do I  want it to be a date? _ ” 

Yes, he did. But he also didn’t want to scare Tyler away as soon as Ty was starting to trust him as a  friend.

“Or we could just do Taco Bell”. He added with an awkward laugh, waiting for Tyler’s answer.

Tyler gave a sweet but hesitant smile. “I don’t go out to eat a lot. I’m not very good with all the.. people, you know.”

Josh nodded. If you asked him, Tyler had a slight touch of Agoraphobia. And an extremely hard time with strangers. How many times did they cross paths before Tyler would even look him in the eye? Quite a few. Josh understood, he was just trying to ignore his thoughts of  _ he knew you meant a date and he doesn’t want to you dummy- _

“ But maybe we could drive to get it? A-and then bring it back here to eat?” Tyler suggested, trying to subtly chew on a fingernail he had already torn off. As subtle as you can be doing so, anyways.

Josh smiled reassuringly. “Yeah, that would be great.”

Tyler grinned back. “Cool.”

And with that came commercial break. Josh took both his and Tyler’s cups to the kitchen for refills of soda. When he came back, Tyler was staring at the screen in front of him, a hint of awe in his eyes. Josh placed the cup down next to him, though Tyler didn’t acknowledge it, completely engrossed in the TV. Josh looked to see what had caught his attention, and found a commercial playing for Blues Clues. They appeared to be doing a reboot of the show, coming out soon.

When the commercial ended, and it was back to X-files, Tyler made a choked noise between a whine and a cry. This startled Josh, and he quickly looked to Tyler, who was still staring at the TV. 

“You okay Ty?” He asked gently, already having an idea of what was going on.

“Nhuh,” Tyler , shooting Josh a look of confusion and distress that brought an emotion out in Josh that he couldn’t pinpoint. 

“I-I wanna watch dat.” Tyler sniffled, looking around himself with confusion. 

Josh placed Tyler’s juice down in front of him, “I don’t think it’s out yet to watch, buddy. It’ll be out soon though.”

Tyler frowned at that, looking more discouraged with each moment that passed. He wanted his stuffies, he wanted the juice in front of him to be in his sippy cup, and more than anything, he wanted to watch Blue’s Clues.

“I wanna watch it..” Tyler repeated, a tear running down his cheek. He hated talking when he was regressed, it was difficult for him. Usually he was alone and there was no need to, unless he was talking to Molasses. But now he was here with Josh, and he didn’t know what to do. It was overwhelming.

Josh would be lying if he wasn’t in panic mode as soon as the tear fell from Tyler’s face. This was the longest that Tyler had ever regressed around him. The stress of not doing so in however long must have been too much. He searched for the tv remote, trying to remember what, if any, children’s channels he had. He flipped for a moment with no luck, mentally kicking himself for not having more than 10 channels. How can he pay so much money for only 10 channels?

Tyler whimpered behind him, sucking desperately on his thumb for comfort as more tears fell. Josh’s heart clenched at the sound.

Tyler couldn’t help his cries. He didn’t know how to get back home, or when Blue’s Clues would come out, and that was all he cared about in the moment. He knew that Josh was with him too, and that scared him. No one had been around him when he was small, it was scary. 

“Here Ty, look what I’ve got for you.”

Tyler whined in protest, wiping his eyes and nose with his hoodie. 

“It’s okay Ty.. Look, I promise you’ll like it, okay?” 

Tyler looked up with blurry eyes, wincing at the brightness in front of his eyes. Josh’s phone was held in front of him, with an old episode of Blue’s Clues in front of him.

The phone was placed in Tyler’s outstretched hands, which he pulled closer to his chest. All tears had quickly subsided now, and Tyler paid attention to nothing else but his show. Josh silently thanked whoever uploaded those episodes to YouTube.

Josh spent some time cleaning up the living room while Tyler was occupied. He was thankful that Ty was happy, and was making a mental list of things to get for Tyler in case he regressed at his apartment. He didn’t want him to feel afraid again. 

Tyler giggled at something that was said on the screen, his eyes squinting in delight. Josh smiled at his joy.

Tyler finally looked up, giving him an angelic smile.

“All done. Another, Joshie?”

Josh almost burst from the affection rushing through him.

“Of course you can, Ty.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone has any requests for things to be added in the story please lemme know :)


	9. Work

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story has close to 2,000 views I am s h o o k. Tysm

Tyler stared at himself in the mirror, wearing his "interview clothes" once again. They clearly didn't fit him correctly, the dress pants too short on his legs, and the shirt hanging loosely over him; but it was all he had.  
It had been 3 months since his last attempt at an interview, to which his parents were angry about. 'You should be applying for jobs every day! What on earth are you doing!" His mother had cried in frustration during their last phone conversation. He couldn't see his father, but he was sure that he was shaking his head in shame. "Find something, anything, because we won't support you any longer. We shouldn't have spoiled you as long as we have. Not many parents pay for their adult child's rent, Tyler. You do know that don't you?"

He did know, and he was ashamed that he hadn't been able to support himself. So he tried again, applying to a small cafe within walking distance of the apartment complex. No previous experience needed, something that he _should_ be able to do easily.

If he could get through the interview, that is.

A knock at his front door shook him from his thoughts, and he peeked out of the door before opening, making sure it was who he was expecting: Josh.

Josh smiled warmly at him as he opened the door. "You ready to go?"

Tyler nodded, stepping back to slip on his shoes before locking the door behind him. Josh was kind enough to drive him to the job interview, even though it was only about a 15 minute walk. When Tyler tried to insist that he was fine walking, Josh wouldn't take no for an answer. "I've got the day off and want to spend it with you," Josh had told him, "And maybe we can get Taco bell after?"

Tyler couldn't say no to that.

It was a short drive to the cafe, not nearly long enough for Tyler to calm his nerves (there would never be enough time). When Josh put the car into park, Tyler's hands began to shake. The anxiety was rushing through him, tightening his muscles and making him tremble. Why did he have to be like this? He couldn't screw this up, he HAD to get a job. He needed to a normal, functioning adult. Or he would be living on the streets.

He felt a pleasantly warm hand on top of his chilled one, pushing away his thoughts. He looked up to see Josh turned toward him with a look of concern.

"We're still pretty early, which is good, but I'd say you've got about 10 minutes before you should go in."

Tyler nodded, bringing his free hand up to chew on his nail. Josh gently grasped his palm and placed it back onto his lap. Tyler blushed in shame, he knew he had permanently destroyed his nail beds a long time ago. There was barely anything to chew on.

"Pretend I'm the manager at this cafe," Josh spoke, "I'm going to ask you some standard interview questions and you answer just like you would to them." 

Tyler blinked, slightly confused. Josh gave him a sweet smile that calmed his nerves but also tugged on his heart. "It's good practice."

For the next 10 minutes, they pretended that Josh was interviewing Tyler. With some answers, Josh had Tyler answer him multiple times, waiting until the confidence in his answer came through in his tone. When Tyler didn't know what to say to certain questions, Josh explained to him what the interviewers usually want to hear. It helped Tyler immensely.

When it was time to go in, Josh held Tyler's hands again. Tyler tried desperately to not let a blush come to his cheeks at the gesture. He had no idea how much Josh cared for him.

"You can do this," Josh said to him, his voice confident and encouraging. "You are smart, patient, and kind. You're a good listener, and you learn quickly. You. Can. Do. This."

Tyler nodded, exhaling shakily. He was still nervous, but not nearly as much as when they had arrived. "I'll be right here waiting for you." Josh gave him another grin as he stepped out of the car, walking towards the entrance of the cafe.

30 minutes later, Tyler exited the building, walking hurriedly to Josh's car. Josh watched him through the car mirror. Tyler's facial expression was hard to decipher, and Josh prepared himself on what to say if Tyler hadn't gotten the job. Tyler opened the car door and plopped into the passenger seat, shutting the door.

"How did it go?" Josh asked immediately, not being able to handle any suspense.

Tyler smiled widely, a look of excitement and a bit of disbelief on his flushed face. "I got it!"

"Yes!" Josh yelled, pulling Tyler into a hug, his hip pressing into the console between the seats. "I knew you could do it, Ty!"

Tyler giggled in response, pressing his head onto Josh's chest. “I start this weekend!”

“Oh, I knew you could do it.” Josh gushed, pulling back to look Tyler in the eye. “I’m so proud of you, Ty.”

Tyler blushed darker as that, looking away from Josh’s eyes shyly. “Thanks Jish. I-I wouldn’t have been able to do it without you.”

Josh shook his head at that, still never taking his gaze off of Tyler. “It was all you, buddy. You did it.”

Tyler gave a huff of laughter at that, and Josh started the car back up.

“Now let’s go celebrate with a Taco Bell feast.”


End file.
